Abstract

Allovahlkampfiaspelaeawasidentifiedforthefirsttimein2009.Asafreelivingamoeba,ithasbeensuggested tobeaprotectivehostforsomebacterialpathogensagainstharshenvironmentalconditionsandcantransmitthem tovulnerablehosts.WeaimedinthisstudytotesttheinteractionsbetweenAllovahlkampfiaspelaeaandsomewaterborneandfoodbornebacteriaandunravelifthetestedbacteriacansurviveandmultiplyinsideamoeba.WeusedakeratitisisolateofAllovahlkampfiaspelaeagrowninPYGmediumcontainingproteosepeptone,yeast extracts,andglucose.WeexaminedamoebainteractionswithMethicillinresistantStaphylococcusaureus,Escherichiacoli1,Klebsiellapneumoniae,Enterobacteraerogenes,Citrobactercloaca,Proteusmirabilis,Raoultella terrigena,Raoultellaornitholytica,AeromonashydrophilaandPseudomonasaeruginosausingtheco-culture assays.Amoebalsurvivalratewithdifferentbacterialstrainsweredetermined.WiththeexceptionofProteusmirabilisthatshoweddecreasedsurvivalratesinsideamoebalcells,otherbacterialisolatescouldsurviveand multiplyinsideAllovahlkampfiaspelaeathatwasassociatedwithdecreasedsurvivalratesoftheamoeba. Particularly,Pseudomonasaeruginosa,AeromonashydrophilaandMRSAexhibitedsignificantlyincreasedmultiplicationratesinsideamoeba.OurstudydemonstratedthatAllovahlkampfiaspelaeamayactasareplicative host for pathogenic bacteria with environmental and clinical implications.